Alone
by Tia-Chan18
Summary: He let himself cry in front of the one person who could make him. Alone.


_**So, this situation came to me while I was cleaning my room… I know.. It's a rather weird way of getting an idea. But I tend to think a lot when I clean, so I suppose that could be the reason**_

_**This is AU and it's my first attempt at REAL angst. I'd like feedback on this one as I'm unsure of it.**_

* * *

He couldn't bring himself to go.

He knew he was being a coward, running away from things he didn't want to acknowledge. He was away in Tokyo when he had gotten the news.

His best friend, Orihime Inoue, was killed.

It was unavoidable, as it happened during a busy time of the day, involving a drunk driver. She was being charged with manslaughter and being under the influence. It happened so suddenly, he didn't want to believe it.

He sped the whole way from Tokyo, barely paying attention to the other drivers and children that were playing around the streets.

He didn't even lock the door to his sunfire as he ran towards the hospital where she resided. His heart pounded in his chest, he could've sworn he was having a heart attack while running. Blood rushed to his head when he saw her laying on the gurney. Blood ran from her head down her porcelain skin, bruises had formed all over her body, most of which were covered by the thick sheet.

He didn't register the doctor talking to his father, who had already been there before him.

"_It was an unfortunate event. The driver is unconscious as well, but she's alive. She was under the influence of alcohol. We're still doing testing to see if any sort of drugs were involved. Both of them are so young. It's such a shame."_

He didn't realize when the tears had started to fall, or when he had clutched her frame to his as he whispered her name over and over.

"_**Orihime… Orihime… Orihime**…"_

He continued to mutter her name, praying that this was just a sick, twisted joke. She wasn't dead. No. He refused to believe she would die on him.

**Not without him telling her.**

She was always a very outgoing girl. She was bright, like the shining sun that had decided to hide that day. The complete opposite of the corpse that laid in front of his eyes.

It took four doctors, including his father, to pry Ichigo from her lifeless corpse. He didn't want to leave her side, or let her go for that matter.

All he felt was a numbing sensation before he succumbed to the darkness.

.

.

.

It had been three weeks since the incident. Ichigo had stayed at his father's clinic, under Isshin's orders. He was under lock-down, as his father was very worried about his only son. He hadn't slept or eaten anything in days. And though today was the day of her funeral, he didn't attend.

Isshin hadn't seen his son act this way since the death of his mother, Masaki.

He knew Orihime meant a lot to Ichigo, and he knew that he was going to ask her out soon. It made his heart sting with sadness for his son. The only girl he had ever shown affections to, and she was taken from him before they could even start.

He had taken Yuzu and Karin to her funeral, not wanting them to be near Ichigo. He didn't want to admit that he couldn't trust his son around his own blood.

He didn't answer to any of their questions about their brother, as he didn't know what to tell them.

When they had arrived, Tatsuki and Rukia ran towards their car. They asked Isshin what everyone else wanted to know.

"Where's Ichigo?"

He sighed before shaking his head. "He's not coming."

Tears had formed in Tatsuki's eyes while her hands shook in anger. She couldn't believe how insensitive he was being. He was the closest one, besides her, to Orihime and yet he couldn't get off his lazy ass to come pay respects? Was he really betraying **his** best friend?

A hand covered hers as she looked into Chad's eyes. She could tell he was worried about her, though he chose to remain silent. Rukia watched with worried eyes, Renji not far behind, as Isshin and the girls went towards the service.

It wasn't big, as they knew Orihime wouldn't want the whole town to grieve.

All of them stood quiet, despite some of them crying, as the minister spoke about her life and how she was going to a good place.

Tatsuki had cried into Chad's chest, not believing her best friend was gone. Torn and ripped from her life without any warning. Uryu had pushed his glasses up, keeping a neutral expression on his face. Rukia and Renji watched with sad eyes as the casket was lowered into the grave.

Isshin gave a sad smile as he comforted the girls. He knew they were rather close with her, they had considered her part of the family. He had felt the same, thinking of her as a third daughter.

And just like that, Orihime Inoue was put into the ground.

.

.

.

It was in the evening, when Ichigo had disappeared. Isshin didn't know when he had left, but he noticed that his cell phone was on him, so he didn't worry too much. He had called Rukia, letting her know about Ichigo taking off.

Not much passed between them, and he had hung up the phone, a sigh escaping his lips.

_Just don't do something stupid… son._

.

.

.

He had hardened his resolve. He wanted to go see her, even if it hurt him.

He felt he owed her that much, since he didn't bother going to the service. He knew she was going to be disappointed that he wasn't there. But a part of him knew that she would've understood, as he didn't like expressing his emotions around others.

He didn't ask where she was buried, as he remembered her talking about it once.

.

.

.

"_Ne, Ichigo? Where do you want to be buried when you die?"_

_He had looked up from their studies, confusion written on his face. He scratched the back of his head before he shrugged._

"_I don't know… I never thought about it."_

_She giggled lightly before looking out the library window. _

"_When I die… I want to be buried right beside my brother. I was beside him the whole time when he passed on. It would be nice if we could reunite again."_

_It never occurred to him that her death would be approaching. _

_._

_._

_._

He got to her grave in no time, a sad smile on his face when he saw Sora's beside hers.

"Well… It looks like you got your wish…"

Both his hands were in his jacket pockets, his posture slouched and tense.

"You know… I didn't think you were going to leave us so soon. Tatsuki was really upset when she found out you died on us… Rukia practically cried herself to sleep… I'm sure they both blame themselves for some of it; even though they weren't with you when it happened. I haven't spoken to any of them since you passed… I couldn't really bring myself to face them…"

Silence engulfed him as the wind blew around his tall, tattered form. He was never good at expressing himself. It made him feel silly, talking to a stone that couldn't reply to him. He hardly did it with his mother, who had died a long time ago from a similar fate.

Oh how cruel and sick fate was.

Both times, it had taken two women who meant the world to him. The circumstances were different, but the outcome was the same.

"Orihime… I'm sorry I didn't attend your funeral. I guess… I just didn't want to admit that you were really gone. I was running away from everyone, including myself. I couldn't accept that the only woman I've grown to love was ripped away from me. I guess it's a sign that I'm either incredibly dense or I'm too slow."

He could feel the tears slip from his eyes, but he didn't try to hide his feelings anymore. He allowed himself to break down in front of her grave, not caring if anyone saw or if anyone heard him. At this point, he just didn't care anymore.

He kept his head held high, not wanting to be a coward anymore and finally accepting the reality that was thrown at him.

His best friend was gone. The only person he had grown to love, the only person who knew everything about him. The one person who could make him cry like a child with just one action.

He stood at her grave and cried…

_**Alone.**_

* * *

_**A/N: I was going to include Rukia in the ending, but I wanted to focus on the relationship between Ichigo and Orihime.**_

_**I'm not exactly good with angst or situations like this. So I ended up re-editing some of the story since it seemed... Kinda bleh? **_

_**I hope you enjoyed nonetheless.**_


End file.
